by Ruby Cruz
“As I was explaining to your lovely mother, I have accepted a position as a clinical research coordinator with the esteemed Dr. Catherine DeBourgh. I’m sure with your work with neurovascular patients you have heard mention of her research.” I made a noncommittal sound which prompted Colin to continue his monologue. “She is recruiting patients for the first phase of clinical trials for her new anti-embolism technique and Meryton Medical Center has graciously agreed to be one of the clinical sites for our study. I am here to begin the recruitment process and act as a liaison between Dr. DeBourgh and the neurovascular surgeons at Meryton.”
As Colin droned on, I allowed my mind to wander. I hadn’t heard from George since our almost-date over a week ago. Not that I was keeping track but he was the first guy I’d been really interested in in a very long time. Aside from Tony from security, the last time I’d had any real romantic relationship with someone of the opposite sex was over a year ago. Even a drought that long doesn’t make Colin Richardson remotely attractive to me, I thought.
Colin described the recruitment procedures he would be implementing with potential clients and I wondered how I’d ever tolerated him in high school. He’d been less verbose then, I concluded, and too shy to be so self-involved. His mother emerged from the kitchen to see how we “kids were getting along” and I smiled noncommittally. It was going to be a long evening.
Later, after dinner, a painful affair which mostly consisted of one-sided monologues originating from the Richardson family, Colin cornered me as I was getting Chloe ready to go home. “It was so nice seeing you, Lizzy, after all this time. I hope we can spend even more time catching up in the next couple of weeks.”
Ooh, ooh, can we? “My schedule is pretty busy at the hospital.”
“No worries, I’ll be spending most of my days at the hospital while I’m here. Perhaps we can have lunch.”
Oh, God, how do I politely decline?
Before I could say anything, my mother answered, “Of course she’ll find the time, won’t you, Lizzy?”
If Colin’s parents hadn’t been in attendance I would’ve probably smacked her and told Colin a flat, “Hell no!” Instead, I shrugged. “Sure, why not?”
Colin brightened. “Excellent. Then I shall see you later in the week.”
~
Unfortunately, he took me at my word about lunch. I was charting at the nurse’s station when I felt a hand on my shoulder. Startled, I jerked around and saw that the hand belonged to Monologue Man himself. He was standing uncomfortably close to me and I could practically count the drops of sweat leaking from his palm onto my shoulder. I schooled my features into a polite expression. “Hi, Colin.”
“Lizzy, I’m so glad I encountered you today. I took the liberty of inquiring about your schedule with your nurse manager as we had the unfortunate oversight to neglect exchanging contact information the other night.”
Over Colin’s shoulder, I spied Luke emerge from the med room. In exaggerated fashion, he stopped in his tracks, eyed Colin and me interestedly, and then raised his eyebrows questioningly. I shook my head almost imperceptibly, to which Luke made a lewd gesture, at which I replied with a scratch of my neck with my middle finger. Colin was so engrossed in his speech that he didn’t notice any of the exchange. Unfortunately, I was so engrossed in my interaction with Luke that I completely missed what Colin had been talking about.
“So, how does that sound?”
I blinked. Shit. Oh well, might as well come clean. “I’m sorry. It’s been a long morning. How does what sound?”
“Seeing as you’re busy on the unit today and I’d hate to take you away from your patients, I was hoping we could get together during off hours, perhaps tomorrow evening after your shift? There are some aspects of my research I would really like to discuss and your manager seemed keen to the idea that you were the nurse to contact.”
Damn my mother and her matchmaking schemes. Why the hell did she pick Colin Richardson out of all people to fix me up with? And it seemed he’d fallen in with the plan wholeheartedly. Damn, damn, double damn. My mind raced with ways to excuse myself politely from any further association with him. Taking my silence as acquiescence, Colin said, “Excellent. I’ve been told that Riley’s Pub is still the popular hangout these days, so why don’t we meet there at eight?”
Because I just couldn’t come up with a good enough excuse that wouldn’t sound completely rude or implausible, I shrugged. “Sure.”
“Great. I’ll see you then.” Colin actually walked away from the nurses’ station skipping. Oh. My. God. What have I just done?
Luke sought me out a few minutes later. “Was that Colin Richardson? Freshman year in high school Colin Richardson? The guy with the sweaty palms obsessed with gaming?”
“One and the same.”
“Time was not his friend.” I didn’t say anything because I agreed with him and didn’t want to endure any more ribbing than was already coming to me. “So what did he want? I’d heard that he’d moved to the city. I didn’t know he was back in town.”
After I explained the whole story, Luke started to laugh. Actually, laugh is the wrong word. He started to guffaw, long loud belly laughs that had the other nurses and doctors within earshot glancing in our direction. Tears actually formed in his eyes, he was laughing so hard. “God, I needed that,” he declared, wiping his eyes.
“Are you quite done?” I asked him shortly. I was in no mood for his antics.
“Oh, come on, Lizzy, Colin’s harmless. What’s it going to hurt having one drink with him? Who knows? He may turn out to be the man of your dreams.” The thought started Luke giggling again.
“Cut it out.” I glanced around again to make sure we weren’t being overheard. “You know I have absolutely no interest in Colin Richardson. I just hate the idea of leading him on in any way and, if the other night at my mom’s was any indication, I’m in for another evening of boring monologues about topics I could care less about. Just shoot me now to prevent me the misery. I just couldn’t think of an excuse that wouldn’t damage my mom’s relationship with his parents.”
“Hey, maybe you should just come clean with him and tell him that you’re doing this out of obligation to your mom and that you’re not really interested in a relationship right now.”
“But that would be a lie because what if George texts me and we go out and Colin sees us together?”
“Aha, now we come to the crux of the issue. You’re holding out for George, even though you told me yourself that he acted all weird around Darcy at the bar the other night.”
“But I told you, it was because Darcy ruined his life. I’d act weird, too, if I encountered someone from my past who completely ruined my life.”
“Fine, if that’s how you want to see it. I still think you should just lay it straight for Colin and save both of you the time and the bother.”
~
I hate to admit that I ignored Luke’s advice and suffered through the next evening with Colin. I knew I would never hear the end of it from my mother if I just blatantly refused to see him. This way, after an evening of drinks, I could report to her that I was still completely uninterested in maintaining any type of relationship with Colin Richardson. The problem with my brilliant plan, though, was that he wouldn’t take the hint that I was uninterested.
He regaled me with monologues and anecdotes about city living, about Dr. Catherine DeBourgh’s wonderfully renovated office space, about the recent online gaming convention he’d attended, and his favorite TV shows. And even though I watched TV and enjoyed crime and medical dramas, he dismissed my interests as being “pedestrian” and “uninformed,” as if his liking for science fiction and fantasy were higher brow. When the evening finally ended after I nursed my second Diet Coke, Colin insisted on escorting me to my car and declaring that he’d had a wonderful time and was hoping I would favor him “with another evening, perhaps tomorrow night?”
This time, I truthfully rep
lied, “Jane is working so I have to watch Chloe,” to which he countered, “Perhaps the following night?”
Fortunately, between my work schedule and Jane’s, the next possible evening I had free wasn’t until next week, and I wasn’t willing to sacrifice another evening for my mother. When Colin realized this, he suggested, “Well, perhaps lunch, then? I’d really like to spend more time with you, Lizzy.”
Argh. I finally said, “If the unit isn’t too busy, maybe I can squeeze in the time.” I prayed that the next few shifts would be slammed.
Well, God must have been listening because over the next week the hospital was the busiest I’d seen during the summer months. Our unit practically overflowed with patients with diagnoses of chest pain and heart failure, and I surmised that a surfeit of people doing too much strenuous yard work and eating salty barbecue was to blame. Colin dogged me during the shifts I worked and I wondered how much work he was actually getting accomplished at the hospital since much of his time was wasted in tracking me down.
Even though the girls knew I wasn’t interested in him, they mercilessly teased me about my “shadow.” Every time I flashed an annoyed or helpless look to Luke during one of our shifts, he just shrugged at me as if to say, “I told you so.”
The upside to the whole situation was that I knew Colin was scheduled to return to New York by the end of the week, so I only had to endure a few more days of his unwanted attention and prattle.
The downside to my busy schedule was that when George finally did text me to get together again, our schedules didn’t coincide until about a week later. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to mind the wait and we agreed to meet at Riley’s again. We enjoyed a couple of drinks, the time made even more pleasant by the absence of a certain dour doctor and the dark cloud that always seemed to accompany him. When I mentioned I would be attending the Nurses Gala, George appeared interested. “A chance to see you and other hot nurses sexily dressed? I’m in.” He didn’t seem deterred by the cost of the ticket, explaining, “I’ve been doing a lot of overtime. I gotta spend my cash somewhere, and what better cause than to help out nurses?”
The day before Colin finally returned to New York, he stopped by the unit and told me that he planned to return for the Nurses Gala and would I honor him with a dance or two? Even though I’d wanted to attend the gala and had been pleased that my name had been one of the ones picked from the pool of nurses from our unit to attend, the last thing I wanted to do was fend off the attention of Colin Richardson all night. All I could do was to respond politely that if I was available, one dance would be fine.
CHAPTER TEN
Now We Can Remain Silent
I was the designated driver for the evening. Lydia wanted to be able to drink and flirt with Dr. Forster, whom she’d begun to date casually, and I had to drop off and pick up Chloe from Kate’s house. By the time we arrived at the Netherfield mansion, I was wondering if I’d be able to sneak a glass of wine, if only to get through my promised dance with Colin.
The first part of the evening was relatively tame. Jane was seated at a table with Charlie, Caroline and other Bingley executives and hospital administration. My mother had found a seat with some people she knew from church, including the Richardsons, and I was content to be seated with my co-workers, all of whom admired the lavish ballroom. My manager commented, “Mary and the rest of the planning committee really outdid themselves this year. This is a spectacular venue, and the fact that the majority of the proceeds are going into the nursing fund is a bonus.”
Though I’d visited the Netherfield mansion just weeks ago, the transformation of the property was nothing short of miraculous. It seemed as if a small army of contractors had worked diligently to ensure that every inch of the property was immaculately groomed and gleaming. The ballroom itself was a sight, with glass walls overlooking the beautifully lit and landscaped veranda, polished wet bar with tuxedoed bartender in attendance, a raised dais on which a well-coifed band covered music from the forties, and even a small dance floor designated in the center of the space. I spied Mrs. Pratchett reigning over the wait staff, and wondered if she’d handled all the catering herself.
My table buzzed with conversation about the evening and admiration about everything from the ballroom to the band to the food. I couldn’t help but search the crowd for a familiar tow-head with dimples. The last time we’d spoken he’d assured me that he’d be at the gala and had gone so far as to make me promise to save him a dance. “I like the way you move, sweetheart,” he’d murmured. The memory of how he’d allowed his lips to linger over mine brought a flush to my cheeks. I wanted things to work out with George but there was a glaring lack of heat between us and a small part of me wondered if George had noticed it also; maybe that was why he hadn’t shown up yet and why he wasn’t returning my texts.
Once dinner was over, an excellent meal that had everyone exclaiming over the assault to their waistlines, the band picked up the pace. My manager, having had more than her share of wine, cut loose and urged the other girls at the table to join her on the dance floor. I was dragged along and found myself swing dancing with a slightly drunk Natalie and Karina. I felt a tap on my shoulder and found my smile fading when I saw Colin grinning at me. “Hi, Lizzy, I believe you promised me a dance.”
I groaned inwardly but agreed, “Yes. I did, didn’t I?” Stupid me.
As Colin took my hands and led me to the beat, my stomach turned at the feel of sweat on his palms. His forehead was glistening also, and I could feel eyes watching us from both my table and his. God, I’ll never hear the end of this from my co-workers.
I lost count of how many times Colin stepped on my feet, or led us careening into another couple on the dance floor. At the end of the song, I was relieved when he released me. He gave me an exaggerated bow and I bid a hasty retreat back to my table where I retrieved scented hand sanitizer from my purse. As I coated my hands with the scent of apples, I swore I was going to have nightmares about his sweaty palms and renewed my resolve to avoid Colin for the rest of the evening. After finishing with the hand sanitizer, I spied Colin at the bar, so I moved quickly towards the opposite end of the ballroom. In my haste, I bumped into a tall figure.
“Lizzy,” a surprised voice greeted me. I glanced up and saw Dr. Darcy staring down at me enigmatically.
“Dr. Darcy. Hi. I almost didn’t recognize you without the scrubs.” I felt suddenly awkward. From the way the tux was cut, I wouldn’t have been surprised to learn it had been custom-tailored for him. Even though the words had never entered my mind regarding him before, I had to admit he was as “smoking hot” as Noreen had insisted.
“I could almost say the same thing about you. You’re looking very nice this evening, Miss Bennett. The color of your dress suits your eyes.”
Despite myself, I could feel the blush creep onto my cheeks as I self-consciously smoothed the skirt of my pale blue cocktail dress. “Thanks. You look nice also.”
After an awkward pause, he cleared his throat. “Are you here on your own?”
“Oh, no. I came with Lydia and other nurses from our unit. And Jane is here with Charlie, as you probably know. By the way, it was really nice of your practice to donate all those tickets so nurses from our unit could go to this thing.”
Darcy gave a noncommittal shrug. Knowing him, he probably hadn’t even known that his practice had made the donation, or worse, he had allowed the other doctors to donate the money while holding out against inviting lowly nurses to the gala. His eyes shifted uncomfortably and he cleared his throat again. “Are you enjoying yourself?”
I mimicked his shrug and fought to remain polite and civil. “It’s not really my thing, although the food is really good.”
“What’s not really your thing?”
“All this extravagance. It seems like a lot of money is being spent in order to raise money for the hospital. It sort of seems counterproductive.”
“I suppose you have a point, however, m
any people feel like they’re getting something from their money when they’re being offered good food and drink in exchange for a two hundred dollar donation, especially when other people are enjoying those benefits free of charge.” He raised his drink glass and sipped. I had a vague feeling he was needling me purposefully.
Before I could retort, a voice said, “Dr. Darcy, how delighted I am to see you here and speaking with the intelligent and witty Miss Bennett. I understand you have already made her acquaintance through her position at the hospital?”
Darcy seemed utterly perplexed by being addressed by Colin. “I didn’t realize you were in the area, Colin.” As they shook hands I wondered how the two men knew each other.
“I’m sure I mentioned I grew up in this area. When Lizzy told me about the gala, I made a point to attend. After all, one must support our local hospitals and the nurses who work there. Plus, events like this are rife with networking opportunities, though I’m sure an esteemed doctor such as yourself is probably already aware of that.” Colin flashed a grin at me. “Lizzy, would you do me the honor of dancing with me again?”
Before I could flounder a negative response, Darcy interrupted, “I’m sure she would love to, Colin, but she has already agreed to dance with me.”
Not to be undone, Colin replied with a bright smile, “Right. Of course. Perhaps the next one.”
Before I could answer, Darcy was leading me away to the dance floor. We were swaying in time with the music when he said, “You’re welcome.”
I bristled at his smugness. “I can handle Colin Richardson.”